Car-door mechanism



Oct. 29, 1929.

B. w. KADEL.

CAR DOOR MECHANISM Filed Feb. 4, 1926 l. u v w l l nue n To@ Patented Oct. 29, 1929 UNITED STATES BYEBS W. KABEL, F BALTIMORE, MARYLAND CAB-DOOR MECHANISM ,Application led February This invention relates to door mechanisms for railway cars or the like, and has among its objects to provide improved means for holding the pivoted doors of such cars in closed position. Another object is to provide means whereby when such doors are pushed shut they may be temporarily supported in partly closed position, and then forced by means of the door-supporting mechanism itself to more completely closed position and locked in such latter position. .A still further object is to provide a railway car having a hinged door, with a latching member secured to the door and a shouldered member ixedly secured to the car body for ydoor-supporting engagement by the latching member, the contour of the shoulder' of said member being formed with a fiat preliminary face and a flat linal face whereby the door, may be supported in a stable manner in either partly or fully closed position, with a beveled portion connecting the preliminary and final faces whereby movement of the latch from the preliminary face to the final face will force the door toward its seat.'l A still further object is to provide a door having a stiffening member, preferably of Z section, secured upon its outer face with a housing connecting the stiener and the door, and with a door-supporting latch pivoted in the housing. Another object is to provide means on the car body ada ted to -support a prying lever whereby amaged doors may be pried shut or frozen doors pried open by causing the lever to bear respectively' a alnst the outer or under face of the door sti ener.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists of the formation, combination and arrangement of parts as will be herein described and finally claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, which show apreferred form of the invention, Figure 1 is a fragmentary side elevational view of the hopper portion of a car of the well known twin hopper ty e to which the invention is shown as app ied. Fifure 2 is an outer face view of a corner o? the door, a

y .portion onlyf the locking mechanism being shown in this View. Figure 3is a view similar to Figure 2, but showing additional ele- 4, 1926. Serial No. 86,023.

ments of the door mechanism. The directions in which the views of Figures 2 and 3 are taken are indicated in Figure 1 by the arrows A and B respectively. Figure 4 is a transverse, horizontal sectional view through the hopper, this view being taken approximately on the line 4--4 of Figure 1. Figure 5 isa vertical sectional view taken through the door, this view being taken approximately on the line 5 5 of Figure 3. Figure 6 is a detached side elevational view of the fixed hook as used in the mechanism. The preliminary and final positions of the latching nember are indicated in this figure by dotted lhES. While the drawings show the device applied to a car of the twin hopper type, it will be understood that the invention is equally adapted for the doors of cars of other typps, such as flat bottom gondolas, etc.

eferring to the drawings, the side sheet of the hopper is denoted by the numeral 1 and the chute plate or Hoor plate thereof by the numeral 2. Twin hopper cars of this type are often arranged with the sido sheets 1 inclined and with the door opening 'also arranged 1in .an inclined plane so that the doors will tend to fall open b gravity when unlatched. The hopper disc arge opening or door opening, may be defined by a marginal wrapper sheet 3 which comprises a continuous stiil'ener or reinforcing member. It is shown in thel present embodiment as formed of a flan ed strip of steel overlying the discharge e ves of the side sheet l and the floor 8 sheet 2. he outer margin of the member 3 is fashioned with a continuous oiset or flan e 4 forming a seat for the flangedv door 5, te latter serving to close the discharge opening. The bottom and side flanges 6 of the member 3 are spaced respectively from the lsheets 2 and 1, while the main or web portion 3n of the member 3 lies directly afrainst the outer faces of the sheets 2 and 1 andJ may besecured thereto by means of rivets 7 The back edge of the member 3 may be formed as a continuous outstanding stiifening flange 8. It will thus be seen that the web 3 of the member 3 and its spaced flanges 4 and 8 which project outwardly therefrom substantially 2 ipssf'zee normal thereto form, in eect, a channel which serves most efliciently to strengthen and stilien the hopper. The door 5 preferably has a continuous marginal Vflange 9 which is arranged to lie just inside of and parallel with the continuous flange 6 of the member 3., while the door itself is arranged for circumferential seating against the flange 4 of the member 3. Some clearance is indicated in the drawings between the door and its seat in order to allow for inaccuracies of manufacture but it is contemplated that no more clearance will be provided than is absolutelynecessary to permit the door to be latched.

It is the practice to pivotally connect doors of this character to the car body along the upper edges of the doors. The door hinges are not shownin the drawings'but are well known in the art. It will also be'understood that a locking mechanism Aof the character about to be described will usually be applied to each side of the door and to each side of thecar body and the door stilfening member may also comprise the usual door spreader in cases where it is desired to employ separate door plates for each of the aligned hopper openings of cars of this type. A

The door in the .present embodiment is shown as supplied with an external stiftenin g member 10 secured to its outer face. This stiffener is preferably formed of a Z bar which has one flange lying against the door plate and secured thereto by means of rivets 11. This door-contacting flange is turned upward, away from the rail, the web of the Z being arranged normal to or outstanding from' the door plate, and the outermost flange of the Z lying parallel with the door plate and being turned downward toward the rail. This makes an ideal door stiffener or spreader as it provides accessibility and at the same time does not form a pocket for the accumulation of foreign matter and for the development of rust. The stiffener -10 extends tc near the side. edge of the door, terminating just inside of the flange 9 thereof. A housing 12 is mounted upon the end of this stiffener, the housing at the same time being connected to the door plate and being thereby adapted to support and brace the stilfener soi as to eliminate certain torsional strains which are often induced in such members. This housing has an upright outer wall 13 and an upright inner wall 14, these walls being spaced from each other so as to provide 'a space between them to accommodate the pivoted door latch 14a and the pivoted locking cam 15. The outer wall 13 overlies and is secured to the outer face of the downstanding flange'of the `Z by means of rivets 16. This wall is offset around the upper face of the web of the Z and the plane of the upper portion of the wall lies directly above the web of the Z. A portion of the inner wall 12is arranged parallel with the wall 13 and directly above the web of the Z but another portion of it is warped or offset from the first mentioned portion so as to lie against the door plate above the upper edge of the upstanding flange of the Z, this offset portion being secured directly to the door plate by means of rivets 17. The housing has also a transverse wall 18 which overlies the pivoted end of the latch and may also extend around the end of said latch, this wall serving to tie the spaced walls 13 and 14 together. It will be seen that when this housing is riveted to the door spreader and to the door plate it comprises not Aonly a pivot bracket for the latch and for the pawl but also a sturdy tie and brace for the door plate and particularly for the stiflener.

The latch 14a may be formed of a simple bar of steel, pierced at one end to accommodate the pivot pin 19, which pin also passes through the walls 13 and.14 of the housing, thereby pivoting the latch to the housing. The latch is arranged to lie in substantially a horizontal position when in door supporting engagement with the fixed hook or bracket 20. The lower limit of travel of the latch is defined by the upper surface of the web of the Z, so that when the door is open the latch cannot drop below this position. The outermost end of the latch is preferably cut awayl on an inclined line 21 corresponding approximately with the incline of the hopper side sheet 1, thereby increasing the third rail clearance. In order to lock the latch 14a in engaged position, the eccentric cam 15 is provided, this can be pivoted in the housing by means of the pivot pin 22.

Y The fixed' hook or shouldered bracket 2O is arranged to lie against and be secured to the web 3a of the stiffening member 3, rivets 23 passing through and uniting the several parts. The inner end of the hook 20 terminates just inside of the flange 8 of the member 3 and midway of its length it is olfsetto pass around the flange 4. It will be appreciated that since the hook 20 is mounted on the hopper side sheet intermediate the laterally projecting flanges 4 and 8 of the member 3, these flanges, and principally the latter one, will effectively stay the hopper side sheet against outward buckling andv bending due to forces transmitted to the hopper from the hook, the outermost end ofthe hook occupying a plane just outwardly of the side flange 6 of the member 3 and being preferably arranged in a plane corresponding to the incline of the side of the car. The outermost portion of the upper edge of the fixed hook is formed as an inclined approach plane 24 whereby the latch will be caused to ride up over the same when the door is pushed shut.

The contour of the latch-engaging ledge of this fixed hook comprises a plurality of faces,

. tive nature is necessary to catc the upper face 25 being arranged to support thedoor in a partly closed position. The second or lower ace 26, which is nearer the door opening than the face 25, is provided to support the door in fully closed position. An inclined or beveled face 27 connects the faces 25 and 26, so that when the latch 14 is driven down from the face 25 to the face 26, the bevel 27 will cause the door to be forced shut. At the same time the upright nature of face 25 will positively hold Vthe door in temporary position and the upright face 26 will also hold the door firmly in completely closed position.I An upright face or the equivalent is necessary for supporting the door in fullyclosed kposition because many railroads require that door mechanism shall be of a character that will not tend to open under load. It will be appreciated that the face 26 of the present device fulfils this requirement. The provision "of the flat face 25`at the top of the incline 27 also makes the support of the door in temporary position equally sure. This is important as a temporary sup ort of a posi-l up a warped door. f

If the doors become too badly warped it may not be possible to drive the latch from the face 25 down the incline 27 to the face 26. In order to assist in closing such doors I provide a prying aperture 28 in the fixed hook 20.

yBy inserting a pinch bar or the like through this hole and causing 'the inner end of the same to bear upon the outer face of the outermost flange of the Z-bar or upon the adjacent portion of the housing 12, a badly warped door may be forced to a position where the latch 14 will drop down into engagement with the face 26. Usually, however, the door may be forced shut solely by means of the incline 27. The aperture 28 1s suitably located so that the pinch bar may also be applied therethrough to seat against the underface of the outermost flange of the Z in order to pry a. frozen door shut. This is frequently desirable in extreme weather.

It will be seen that the mechanism as described is simple and strong and it should be particularly noticed that the entire mechanism is arranged so that it can be assembled remote from the car shop and applied to the car as a specially manufactured unit. Variations in the dimensions of adjacent parts of the car body or doors will not affect the device to the extent that occurs with some other mechanisms. Particularly it should be noticed that the latch 14a is guided and completely supported in the housing and upon the upper face of the web of the Z. lt is thereby possible to provide some clearance between the latch and the outer edge of the door flange. As door flanges are subject to lconsiderable variation in manufacture, this is an important feature. I have thus described a preferred embodiment of my invention. Other embodiments are contem lated within the scope of the ap pended claims without departing from uthe spirit thereof. n

What is claimed is:

1. A railway7 car havin a'door hinged to the car body, a flanged stifglening member affixed to the door, a housing connected between the stifener and the door and a doorsupporting latch pivoted in the housing, the stiffening member being arranged with one fiange lying against the door plate and a web outstanding therefrom and with 'an outer flange turned downward toward the rail, said vhousing' having an outer Wall, the lowermost portion of which overlies and is secured to the outer flange of the stiffen'er and with the upper portion thereof offset toward the door from the lower position thereof and lying in a plane above the web of the stifener, said housing having also an inner wall spaced from and connected to the outer wall, a por? tion of the inner wall being inwardly offset toward the door plate and vbeing secured thereto, the said latch being operably mounted between said walls, and a ledge formed on the car body in position to be engaged by said latch to support the door.

2. A rai way car having a door, a stifener member affixed to the door, the same being of Z section, a housin connecting the stiflener,

and the door, sai housing havin spaced. walls, one thereof lying against and eing secured to the outer face of the door plate and the other l ing against and being secured to the outer ace of the outermost fiange of the Z, a latch pivoted in the housing, a keeper for said latch also pivoted in thehousing, and means on the car body adapted to be engaged by thevlatch to support the door.

3. A railway car having a door, a stiffening member affixed to the door, the same being of Z section and arranged with its web outstanding from the door plate, a latch pivoted to the door, and a ledge member carried by the car body in position to be engaged by the latch to hold the door shut, said ledge member having a lever opening, the same being of such form and arranged in such posi* tion that a bar may be inserted therein and caused to bear upon the outer face of the outermost flange of the Z to force-the door shut and ,against the innerv faceof said fiange to force the door open.

4. A railway car having a. door stifl'ening member aflixed to the door, the same being of Z section and arranged with its web outstand ing from the door plate and a downwardly projecting flange spaced from the door, a housing yaffixed to the stiffener, having a portion overlappingly secured to the downwardly projecting flange thereof, the same having spaced upright walls, a latch pivoted in the housing between said walls and adapted to swing 1n a vertical plane, the web of the Z being arranged to define the lower limit of swing of the latch and comprising a support for the same, and means carried on the car body for engagement by the latch to hold the door in a closed position.

5. In a car door mechanism, the combination with a car having a hopper provided with a lading discharge opening, of a door for closing said opening, a reinforcing member secured to the outer face of the side sheet of the hopper adjacent the discharge openin thereof, the said member being formed wit a web and having laterally spaced flanges united thereto, the latter extending outwardly from the web substantially normal to the side sheet and means secured to the car body intermediate the said laterally spaced flanges for cooperating with the floor to retain it in closed position.

l 6. In a car door mechanism, the combination With a car having a hopper provided with a lading discharge opening, of a door for closing said opening, a reinforcing member secured to the outer face of the side sheet of the hopper adjacent the discharge opening there-v of, the said member being formed with a web and having outwardly projecting laterally spaced flanges united thereto, and means for supporting the door in closed position involving a movable member and a fixed member, one of said members being secured to the hopper intermediate the spaced flanges of the reinforcingmember.

7. In a car door mechanism, the combination with a car having a hopper provided with a lading discharge opening, of a door for closing said opening, means for supporting the door in closed 'position involving a piv'oed member mounted upon `the door and a shouldered member rigidly secured to the car body, and a reinforcing member secured to the outer face of the hopper side sheet adjacent the discharge opening thereof and interposed between said sheet and said shouldered member, said reinforcing member being formed with a web and having laterally spaced flanges projecting outwardly therefrom substantially normal to the side sheet, said shouldered inember being secured to the hopper intermediate said laterally spaced flanges.

8. In a car door mechanism, the combination with a car having a hopper provided with a lading discharge opening, of a door for closing said opening, a reinforcing member secured to the outer face ofthe hopper side sheet adjacent the discharge opening thereof, said member having a web and laterallyspaced flanges projecting outwardly therefrom, one of said-flanges forming an abutment for the door Aand the latter flange having an auxiliary portion disposed substantially parallel with the side edge of the door, and means for supporting the door in closed position involving a shouldered member rigidly secured to the hopper side sheet intermediate the laterally spaced flanges of the reinforcing member and a latch member pivotally secured to the door for cooperating with the shouldered member.

9. In a car door mechanism, the combination with a car having a hopper provided with a lading discharge opening, of a door for closing said opening, a reinforcing member having a portion contacting with and secured to the outer face of the hopper side sheet ad'acent the discharge opening thereof, one e ge of said member having a flange portion proj ecting outwardly from the side sheet, a shouldered member rigidly secured to said sheet intermediate the flanged portion of said member and the edge of-said sheet deiinin the hopper discharge opening, and a lato pivotally mounted on the door for cooperating with said shouldered member to retain the door in closed position.

In testimony whereof` I affix mv signature.

BYERs w. KABEL.

CERTIFICATE OF CRRECTION.

Patent No. 1,733,736. Granted Cctober 29, 1929, to

BYERS W. KADEL.

lt is hereby certified that error appears in the printed specification of the above numbered patent requiring correction as follows: Page 4, line 18, claim 5, for the word "floor" read "door"; and that the said Letters Patent should be read with this correction therein that the same may conform to the record of the case in the Patent Office.

Signed and sealed this 31st day of December, A. D. 1929.

M. J. Moore, (Seal) Acting Commissioner of Patents.

DISCLAIMER 1,733,736.--Byers W. Kadel, Baltimore, Md. CAR-Doon MncHANrsM. Patent dated October 29, 1929. Disclaimer filed September 18, 1934, by the assignee, Wine Railway Appliance Company. Hereby enters this disclaimer to that part of the thing patented which is claimed in said patent in the following words, to wit:

5. I a car door mechanism, the combination with a car having a hopper provided with a lading discharge opening, of a door for closing said opening, a reinforcing member secured to the outer face of the side sheet of the hopper adjacent the discharge opening thereof, the said member being formed with a web and having laterally spaced flanges united thereto, the latter extending outwardly from the web substantially normal to the side sheet and means secured to the car body intermediate the said laterally spaced flanges for cooperating with the door to retain it in closed osition.

p 6. In a car door mechanism, the combination with a car having a hopper provided with a lading discharge opening, of a door for closing said opening, a reinforcing member secured to the outer face of the side sheet of the hopper adjacent the discharge opening thereof, said member being formed with a web and having outwardly projecting laterally spaced flanges united thereto, and means for supporting the door in closed position involving a movable member and a fixed member, one of said members being secured to the hopper intermediate the spaced fianges of the reinforcing member.

7. In a car door mechanism, the combination with a car having a hopper provided with a lading discharge opening, of a door for closing said opening, means for supporting the door in closed position involving a pivoteol member mounted upon the door and a shouldered member rigidly secured to the car body, and a reinforcing member secured to the outer face of the hopper side sheet adjacent the discharge opening thereof and interposed between said sheet and said shouldered member, said reinforcing member being formed with a web and having laterally spaced flanges projecting outwardly therefrom substantially normal to the side sheet, said shouldered member being secured to the hopper intermediate said laterally spaced flanges.

8. In a car door mechanism, the combination with a car having a hopper provided with a lading discharge opening, of a door for closing said opening, a reinforcing member secured to the outer face of the hopper side sheet adjacent the discharge opening thereof, said member having a web and laterally spaced flanges projecting outwardly therefrom, one of said flanges forming an abutment for the door and the latter flange having an auxiliary portion disposed substantially parallel with the side `edge of the door, and means for supporting the door in closed position involving a shouldered member rigidly secured to the hopper side sheet intermediate the laterally spaced flanges of the reinforcing member and a latch member pivotally secured to the door for cooperating with the shouldered member.

9. In a car door mechanism, the combination with a car having a hopper provided with a lading discharge opening, of a door for closing said opening, a reinforcing 'member having a portion contacting with and secured to the outer face of the hopper side sheet adjacent the discharge opening thereof, one edge of said member having a flange portion projecting outwardly from the side sheet, a shouldered member rigidly secured to said sheet intermediate the flanged portion of said member and the edge of said sheet defining the hopper discharge opening, and a latch pivotally mounted on the door for cooperating with said shouldered member to retain the door in closed position.

[Oficial Gazette October 16, 1.934.] 

